News Release
Contact: Public Relations Coordinator
(800) 342-9835, ext. 8130Ray Johnson Remembered By League
(November 14 - Latham, NY) – Ray Johnson, 84, former New York State Credit Union League board chair and a member of the New York Credit Union Hall of Fame, died Weds., November 7 at Southeastern Hospice House near his home in Fairmont, North Carolina.
Born in 1923, Johnson was a director from the Metropolitan chapter and served as League chair from 1985 – 1987. He was an army veteran and served as a member of the Fairmont (NC) Chamber of Commerce.
Johnson joined the movement in 1959 as a volunteer at New York Metropolitan Area Postal CU. He became manager just as a nearby bank lured $1 million away by undercutting the credit union’s rates. With the help of the League and other credit unions, he managed to rebuild, creating programs to encourage members to put money into savings with every loan payment.
By 1992, the $3 million-asset credit union had grown to $48 million. Meanwhile, he was instrumental in forming and growing several other credit unions. When Municipal CU was placed in receivership by the NYS Banking Dept., he was appointed to its Board.
Johnson was one of the founding members of Empire Corporate FCU, serving as treasurer and then chairman. He also served as a CUNA board member from 1983 to 1991. Right before his retirement, he helped organize—and joined in—the 1991 Credit Union March on Washington.
For his lifelong commitment to the credit union movement, Johnson was inducted into the New York Credit Union Hall of Fame in 2003.
League President/CEO William J. Mellin expressed his sorrow following Johnson’s passing.
"On behalf of the League, our condolences go out to Ray’s family," Mellin said. "He was a kind-hearted man who cared deeply for his family and for the credit union movement. He will be missed by all who knew him."
Johnson is survived by his wife, Nina; son, Barry; daughter, Adrien Riley; two grandchildren and three adopted grandchildren.
The New York State Credit Union League (NYSCUL) has served as the trade association for the state’s credit unions for 90 years. It is the fifth largest league in the country. New York credit unions have assets of more than $39 billion and more than 4.2 million members. To learn more about the League, visit www.nyscul.org.
New York State Credit Union
League, Inc. & Affiliates
P.O. Box 15118, Albany, New York 12212-5118 | 19 British American Boulevard, Latham, New
York 12110
800-342-9835 | Fax 518-437-8284
